Hidden Currents by Christine Feehan Page B

back was too important; he’d just have to sort the rest of it out later. Right now, none of his well-thought-out reasons for not believing in her lifestyle seemed to matter at all.
    Outside the open door, lightning lit up the sky in white jagged streaks, illuminating the dark turbulent water of the ocean. Thunder crashed, immediately followed by the angry boom of the sea. The wind rushed into the house and swirled around the women, feeding into the building energy and power in the room.
    There was no way not to believe in the strange magic the sisters had when they were together. He knew Jonas thought it was their love and closeness that somehow made them a powerful force, but Jackson knew it had to be more than that—they seemed elemental parts of the universe—perhaps blessings bestowed on the family at birth. Whatever one believed in, they were a force to be reckoned with.
    Electricity crackled in the room. Power built until the walls undulated and the floor shifted.

3
    ELLE could hear a woman weeping in the distance. Hopeless. Broken. The sound filled with despair. She wished someone would help the woman because the closer she came to the surface, the more pain wracked her entire body and the crying kept pulling her out of her cocoon. She couldn’t imagine what had happened. She couldn’t remember.
    “Sheena. Open your eyes. Stop crying, sweet, I’m here now and it’s going to be okay.”
    Her body jerked involuntarily at the sound of that voice. She knew him. Knew his scent. Knew his touch. He brought pain or took it away. He had become her world. She knew nothing and no one else but him. He fed her. He took her to the bathroom. He chose whether or not she could wear clothes, or have a shower. His punishments, when she defied him—which was often—were terrible. He never changed tone. His voice always remained calm and matter-of-fact. Very powerful.
    His hand stroked over her hair. The tumbled mass of red strands was the only place on her that didn’t hurt. Her back and buttocks were fire. Her breasts burned. And between her legs it throbbed and ached, so sore she didn’t want to move for fear her insides would fall out. But the pain in her head was the worst of all.
    It took a few minutes before she realized that she was the woman weeping. Elle made an effort to quiet, to remember what happened. What had she done that had earned another of his terrible punishments?
    “Sheena, come on now. Open your eyes for me.”
    Her mouth went dry at the sound of his soft, persuasive voice. There was a metallic taste in her mouth. Someone touched her wrist and she knew instantly it was Stavros. In all the weeks he’d kept her, she’d never seen another human being, other than his brother that first day. Not one. She hadn’t heard another voice. He brought food and water. He tied her up and used her in every way he wanted. He whipped her repeatedly, left her alone until she thought she might go insane and yet often spent hours attempting to pleasure her with his hands and mouth and body. She never knew what his touch would bring. Her heart slammed hard in her chest and she tried to jerk away.
    “Shhh, my sweet. I’m going to carry you to the bathtub. When I put you in the water, you have to stay on your hands and knees for me. Can you do that?”
    She felt him slip his arm under her legs. The moment he made contact with her skin she suppressed a scream. Pain flashed through her and her stomach lurched. She tried to bring her hand up to cover her mouth, but her arms were too weak and felt too heavy, as if she were weighted down. Her wrists were burned and swollen.
    His arm came up under her back and she screamed, arching upward trying to avoid contact. Her skin hurt and every movement made the pain crash through her skull. Fear ate at her. She couldn’t remember. She was so thirsty she could barely part her swollen, dry lips.
    “Shhh, Sheena, stay still. You’ll only hurt yourself more.” He sounded sad, his